1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a rearward pedal movement restraint assembly that restrains the rearward movement of a pedal when a frontal collision occurs in a vehicle.
2. Description of Related Art
In a knee airbag device shown in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-098868 (JP-A-2004-098868), a knee panel, which contacts a brake pedal to stop the rearward movement of the pedal in the event of a collision, is integrally formed in the front end of a knee airbag module.
In a rearward movement prevention structure for a pedal shown in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2007-084009 (JP-A-2007-084009), an electric power steering unit is provided with a rearward movement prevention bracket that extends toward the rear face of a clutch pedal, so that if a collision occurs, the rearward movement prevention bracket interferes with the rearward movement of the pedal, and thus the pedal is restrained from moving rearward.
By the way, in recent years, knee airbag modules have been mounted higher to reduce the size and weight of the knee airbag. However, in the knee airbag device of JP-A-2004-098868, because the device is constructed so that rearward movement of the pedal results in contact with an intermediate portion of the knee panel in an up-down direction, the device cannot be applied to vehicles in which the knee airbag module is mounted high in the vehicle.
On the other hand, as for the knee airbag device described in JP-A-2007-084009, because a dedicated rearward movement prevention bracket for stopping the rearward movement of the brake pedal at the time of a collision is needed, the number of component parts increases. Besides, in a vehicle having the body floor portion that is greatly accelerated at the time of a collision, there is a need to reinforce a rearward movement prevention bracket, which results in an increase in cost and mass.